Staff

“In court, the only thing that matters is the jury”

Michael S. Williams spent over a dozen years in California law enforcement. For several years, he was assigned to the multi-agency Major Crimes Violators Task Force in Los Angeles specializing in surveillance and covert sting operations. For over 37 years he has provided investigative and consulting services to the public and private sector specializing in fraud, embezzlement, workplace violence and fatal traffic investigations. For over ten years, he was a lead instructor for the National Traffic Safety Institute (NTSI). He served twice as the chair of the Santa Barbara Chapter of the American Society for Industrial Security (ASIS) and is a well established speaker on security, investigation and emergency planning issues throughout California. He is co-host of the radio show “Community Alert” on KZSB – AM 1290 & FM-96.9 covering various aspects of public safety for over 15 years and the morning host of “Mike in the Morning,” (a corporate dba) since 2020. For several years he served as columnist for the Santa-Barbara News-Press and the California FIre Service magazine covering a variety of public safety issues. He has authored many papers including, “A Tragedy of the Commons, A review of our emergency medical system.”   

Williams is a member of California State Firefighters’ Association (CSFA), having served on the volunteer and public relations committees, and as a Southern Division Deputy Director. He is active with several local organizations including the Santa Barbara County Fire Safe Council, the Santa Barbara County Fire Chief’s Training Officer’s Association, Santa Barbara Chapter of CAER and the Santa Barbara County Executive CERT Committee. Since 2008, he serves on the California State Board of Fire Services representing the volunteer firefighters of California. Williams serves as the President-Executive Director of the Fire Services Training Institute (FSTI) and the Wildland Residents Association, Inc.-San Marcos Pass Volunteer Fire Department, in Santa Barbara. He was co-founder and past chair of the public information officers association, Emergency Public Information Communicators (EPIC) serving the Santa Barbara County Operational Area.

Mark A. Ward has over thirty years of commercial broadcast experience and over twenty-five years of law enforcement experience with the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department and the Lompoc Police Department. Ward’s forensic work has included the Santa Barbara County District Attorney, the Santa Barbara Police Department, the University of California Police Department, the Santa Maria Police Department, the Ventura County District Attorney and Sheriff’s Department, the San Luis Obispo District Attorney and Hernando County Sheriff’s Office in Florida, U.S. Atomic Energy Commission, among others. His assignments have included Major Crimes and Property Crimes detective. Ward has worked many very high profile criminal investigations, as well as providing forensic audio enhancement of both analog and digital recordings for trial. He is a graduate of the National Law Enforcement and Corrections Technology Center-West, Digital Enhancements of Audio for Law Enforcement School.

Ward is currently providing forensic audio services for both criminal and civil trials. In his spare time, he is a well know radio personality in the Santa Barbara area, producing radio commercials and public service announcements.

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